登陆注册
37325200000065

第65章 PREPARING FOR THE WEDDING (1)

Meanwhile the love-affairs between the middle-aged couple were prospering well, after a fashion; after the fashion that they liked best, although it might probably have appeared dull and prosaic to younger people.Lord Cumnor had come down in great glee at the news he had heard from his wife at the Towers.He, too, seemed to think he had taken an active part in bringing about the match by only speaking about it.His first words on the subject to Lady Cumnor were, - 'I told you so.Now didn't I say what a good, suitable thing this affair between Gibson and Clare would be! I don't know when I have been so much pleased.You may despise the trade of match-maker, my lady, but I am very proud of it.After this, I shall go on looking out for suitable cases among the middle-aged people of my acquaintance.I shan't meddle with young folks, they are so apt to be fanciful; but I have been so successful in this, that I do think it is a good encouragement to go on.' 'Go on - with what?' asked Lady Cumnor, drily.'Oh, planning - You can't deny that I planned this match.' 'I don't think you are likely to do either much good or harm by planning,'

she replied, with cool, good sense.'It puts it into people's heads, my dear.' 'Yes, if you speak about your plans to them, of course it does.But in this case you never spoke to either Mr Gibson, or Clare, did you?' All at once the recollection of how Clare had come upon the passage in Lord Cumnor's letter flashed on his lady, but she did not say anything about it, but left her husband to flounder about as best he might.'No! I never spoke to them; of course not.' 'Then you must be strongly mesmeric, and your will acted upon theirs, if you are to take credit for any part in the affair,' continued his pitiless wife.'I really can't say.It's no use looking back to what I said or did.I'm very well satisfied with it, and that's enough, and I mean to show them how much I'm pleased.I shall give Clare something towards her rigging out, and they shall have a breakfast at Ashcombe Manor-house.I'll write to Preston about it.When did you say they were to be married?' 'I think they'd better wait till Christmas, and I have told them so.It would amuse the children, going over to Ashcombe for the wedding; and if it's bad weather during the holidays I'm always afraid of their finding it dull at the Towers.It's very different if it's a good frost, and they can go out skating and sledging in the park.But these last two years it has been so wet for them, poor dears!' 'And will the other poor dears be content to wait to make a holiday for your grandchildren? "To make a Roman holiday." Pope, or somebody else, had a line of poetry like that."To make a Roman holiday,"' - he repeated, pleased with his unusual aptitude at quotation.'It's Byron, and it's nothing to do with the subject in hand.I'm surprised at your lordship's quoting Byron, - he was a very immoral poet.' 'I saw him take his oaths in the House of Lords,' said Lord Cumnor, apologetically.'Well! the less said about him the better,' said Lady Cumnor.'I have told Clare that she had better not think of being married before Christmas;and it won't do for her to give up her school in a hurry either.' But Clare did not intend to wait till Christmas; and for this once she carried her point against the will of the countess, and without many words, or any open opposition.She had a harder task in setting aside Mr Gibson's desire to have Cynthia over for the wedding, even if she went back to her school at Boulogne directly after the ceremony.At first she had said that it would be delightful, a charming plan; only she feared that she must give up her own wishes to have her child near her at such a time, on account of the expense of the double journey.But Mr Gibson, economical as he was in his habitual expenditure, had a really generous heart.He had already shown it, in entirely relinquishing his future wife's life-interest in the very small property the late Mr Kirkpatrick had left, in favour of Cynthia; while he arranged that she should come to his home as a daughter as soon as she left the school she was at.The life-interest was about thirty pounds a year.Now he gave Mrs Kirkpatrick three five-pound notes, saying that he hoped they would do away with the objections to Cynthia's coming over to the wedding; and at the time Mrs Kirkpatrick felt as if they would, and caught the reflection of his strong wish, and fancied it was her own.If the letter could have been written and the money sent off that day while the reflected glow of affection lasted, Cynthia would have been bridesmaid to her mother.But a hundred little interruptions came in the way of letter-writing; and by the next day maternal love had diminished; and the value affixed to the money had increased: money had been so much needed, so hardly earned in Mrs Kirkpatrick's life; while the perhaps necessary separation of mother and child had lessened the amount of affection the former had to bestow.

So she persuaded herself, afresh, that it would be unwise to disturb Cynthia at her studies; to interrupt the fulfilment of her duties just after the semestre had begun afresh; and she wrote a letter to Madame Lefevre so well imbued with this persuasion, that an answer which was almost an echo of her words was returned, the sense of which being conveyed to Mr Gibson, who was no great French scholar, settled the vexed question, to his moderate but unfeigned regret.But the fifteen pounds were not returned.

同类推荐
  • 夷白斋诗话

    夷白斋诗话

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。
  • 供诸天科仪

    供诸天科仪

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。
  • 夷门雪赠主人

    夷门雪赠主人

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。
  • 文笔要诀

    文笔要诀

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。
  • Hospital Sketches

    Hospital Sketches

    本书为公版书,为不受著作权法限制的作家、艺术家及其它人士发布的作品,供广大读者阅读交流。
热门推荐
  • 狼神之路

    狼神之路

    混沌大陆上,在神魔战争后的一万年后诞生了新一代的混沌之子,可于此同时还出现了一股在海洋中的黑暗势力,而魔神的封印也渐渐变弱。一位狼族少年尤尔和他的五个伙伴将会在大陆上怎样闯出他们令后代长久流传的千古传说,又会怎样去面对背叛的弟弟呢?请看这代狼神的成神之路。
  • 问仙门

    问仙门

    一心求道,问道之路始于足下。血海家仇,矢志修仙。仰天啸,长问苍天,何处是仙门。________因无意间打开了传承之门导致失忆,前尘往事曳然而止,醒来时发现身处原始部落……从身负血海深仇的古老世家继承人变成一个失忆了却拥有闻所未闻传承的散修……
  • 特种狂兵

    特种狂兵

    他,是战场上令人闻风丧胆的恐怖杀神。她,是娱乐圈炙手可热的大明星。他们的相遇是一场阴谋还是天意?昔日的恋人,却是害死至亲的祸因,沈飞又该如何面对?‘神剑’出鞘,护美杀敌,再掀腥风血雨!
  • 卓越城市创新街区(谷臻小简·AI导读版)

    卓越城市创新街区(谷臻小简·AI导读版)

    当今中国发展下如何走好创新城市建设发展之路?在知识与创新主导的、城市追求卓越发展的新时代,创新街区广泛兴起,成为卓越城市的“城兴人、人兴业”发展新逻辑的关键动力。
  • 千年殇之魂穿大清

    千年殇之魂穿大清

    前世就不是个招人待见的主,穿越了仍是个悲惨的皇后,在吃人的后宫,努力的活着,本想将心留给自己,却在一转身间,遗失在彼岸花畔,痴人盼归,佳人如梦。有点小白,有点伤感,女主很坚强。男主有点狡猾。立下一生誓言,只求一生一世一双人。
  • 不知道啥时候丢了自己

    不知道啥时候丢了自己

    活的小心翼翼,不敢畅所欲言,说多了担心得罪人,不说又觉得太闷,经常会陷入一种说与不说的矛盾中,不管怎样都很自己和谐不了,抬头看觉得自己白活了,低头想想自己还是很幸福,白天睡不醒,晚上不睡觉,想找人说话却发现没有一个可以倾诉,我不知道自己活着其实已经死了
  • 逆天废材:呆萌杀手妃

    逆天废材:呆萌杀手妃

    她冷傲没有情感的杀手却被昔日好友无情的刺杀只第一杀手的交椅她含恨重生发誓以后不再相信任何人为了到达世界顶峰她苦修魔法强抢神兽只不过这个白色的毛球真的是神兽?当她遇到他,他闯入她的心中,她说”你若不离我便不弃“他说”你若不离生死相依“
  • 调皮皇后之皇上别爱我

    调皮皇后之皇上别爱我

    欧阳羽儿爱上官玉龙整整爱了两世最终会如何?龙是否还是负了羽?还是羽负了龙?
  • 天行

    天行

    号称“北辰骑神”的天才玩家以自创的“牧马冲锋流”战术击败了国服第一弓手北冥雪,被誉为天纵战榜第一骑士的他,却受到小人排挤,最终离开了效力已久的银狐俱乐部。是沉沦,还是再次崛起?恰逢其时,月恒集团第四款游戏“天行”正式上线,虚拟世界再起风云!
  • 孤独的尽头是自由:李国文经典散文

    孤独的尽头是自由:李国文经典散文

    本书是著名作家李国文先生的散文集,收录了李国文四十余篇代表性作品,如《我心匪石》《一条悲哀的狗》《他为什么迷上巴黎》《人的半径有多大》等名篇,包含对生活的见解、对历史的追问、对社会的思考、对时事的反思等,李国文的散文有学问,具真性情,也有一种洞明世事的敏锐的观察力,尤难能可贵的是拥有一颗超然的自由的心,唯其如此,方能获得从容和自信。那些恣肆放言、散淡自在的文字,都是他的“尽意”之作,许多篇章,气势一直环绕于历史和现实之间。